Andrei Rudskoi spoke about the tasks of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

On October 24, the first general meeting of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, established by the order of the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin on May 17, 2023, was held. The St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences consists of 77 academicians and 111 corresponding members of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The SPbO RAS consists of 77 academicians and 111 corresponding members of the RAS. The meeting elected the governing bodies of the department. According to the voting results, the post of Chairman was taken by RAS Academician Andrei Rudskoi. His deputies were Academicians Sergei Bagnenko, Viktor Dolzhenko, Vladimir Peshekhonov, Mikhail Piotrovsky and Vladimir Shevchenko, and the Chief Scientific Secretary — Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vitaly Sergeev. They also elected the presidium of the branch and the chairman of the Statute Commission.

The next day, Chairman of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences Andrei Rudskoi told in the TASS press center why the branch of the Academy of Sciences was established in the Northern Capital and what tasks it faces in the near future and in the future.

For the first time in the history of the Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg has its own department, Andrei Rudskoi emphasized. It was the initiative of Nobel laureate Zhores Alfyorov, we have been going to this result for ten years. And in May 2023, the government issued a decree, which was an important milestone in the development of the Academy of Sciences and a serious step in the reform of the RAS, which began in 2013.

Andrei Rudskoi reminded that the idea of creating three long-established branches of the USSR Academy of Sciences and then the Russian Academy of Sciences — the Ural, Siberian and Far Eastern branches — was to develop the regions, not only industrially, but also intellectually. The St. Petersburg Branch, while maintaining this philosophy, has other tasks. The Northern Capital is home to about 40 research organizations of the Russian Academy of Sciences and more than 50 state higher education institutions, a number of which have strong scientific and technological potential.

St. Petersburg is a powerful megalopolis, and our scientific community, represented by almost two hundred members of the Academy of Sciences, must have its own home so that we can actively and specifically work with government agencies, industrial enterprises as experts in the programs they develop,explained Andrei Rudskoi. Scientific expertise is necessary when preparing the most important city and regional strategic documents, laws, decisions and programs, it should become a method of selecting projects that correspond to scientifically grounded priorities of regional development. No less important is the fact that any product creation now involves interdisciplinary research. The existence of the St. Petersburg branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the scientific councils formed within it will allow consolidating the intellectual potential of scientists of our city in order to work together with universities, enterprises, government agencies on development programs and the creation of real products.

The St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences unites recognized experts in all fields of knowledge. From natural sciences, where scientists solve fundamental problems related to nuclear energy, controlled thermonuclear fusion, to humanities and life sciences, where we are talking about human health and medical instrumentation.

The whole range of equipment that we used to buy abroad, we must now develop ourselves, said Andrei Rudskoi. Here the role of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences will be fundamental, because we will be able not only to attract scientific, design bureaus, industrial enterprises, and the government, but also to develop a program of product realization, launch new technological chains, and provide scientific support for large-scale projects in key areas of economy and culture. Therefore, our main mission is to become a department that integrates the academic, industrial and university communities. We should strive, combining the efforts of industry, science and education, to create in the shortest possible time global competitive products of the new generation.

In addition, Andrei Rudskoi told the press conference participants about the events planned in connection with the upcoming anniversary — the 300th anniversary of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which will be celebrated in February 2024.